Honorable Mention: Fayetteville 2030: Food City Scenario

University of Arkansas Community Design Center

Fayetteville, Ark., faces conflicting food fortunes. On one hand, the state is impressively productive (second in chicken production, third in turkey and catfish, and home to food giants Tyson Foods and Walmart). “Fayetteville is in one of the state’s most prosperous regions,” juror Sasa Radulovic said, “but it also has the highest rate of childhood hunger in the U.S.” As a way to reconcile this disparity, the University of Arkansas Community Design Center (UACDC) came up with Fayetteville 2030, a set of planning guidelines that would introduce urban agriculture at scales that benefit local communities. The plan would complement the city’s growth projections by including a food-production program into yet-to-be developed land, merging agriculture with infrastructure, transportation, and housing. Strategies would include community gardens, composting networks, greenhouses, aquaculture facilities, and edible parks. Unlike the larger-scale industrial food production that ships food out of Arkansas, Fayetteville 2030 would distribute crops locally through exchanges, hubs, and markets. UACDC conceived the plan in such a way that it would meet other municipal objectives, too, including economic development, energy conservation, and resilience.